Age is not a factor as Chong Wei hopes to emulate Federer
KUALA LUMPUR: Shuttler Lee Chong Wei is inspired by tennis veteran Roger Federer’s recent Melbourne Open success when the Swiss legend won his 20th Grand Slam at the age of 36.
And the 35-year-old Malaysian is highly motivated to defend his AllEngland title in Birmingham from March 14-18.
Like Federer, Chong Wei is defying Father Time to sustain his illustrious career.
“Roger said that age was just a number and I couldn’t agree more. I’m just in awe of his charisma and commitment to his sport,” said Chong Wei.
“I’m not sure what 2018 holds for me but I’m sure of one thing – I’m going to give my best in all the major tournaments that I’ll be competing in this year.
“All-England is a special tournament. It’s the oldest and one of the toughest to win. I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
Last year, Chong Wei made a remarkable comeback from a knee injury to win his fourth All-England title.
He also won in 2010, 2011 and 2014.
This year’s All-England offers US$1mil(RM3.9mil) in prize money under the new World Tour tourna- ment structure.
Chong Wei’s main challengers in his 14th All-England will be world No. 1 and reigning world champion Viktor Axelsen, China’s Chen Long, Lin Dan, and a host of players from Indonesia, India, South Korea and Japan.
But first, Chong Wei will spearhead Malaysia’s challenge at the Asia Team Badminton Championships in Alor Setar, Kedah, from Feb 6-11.
The Asian meet serves as the qualifier for the Thomas Cup Finals in Bangkok, Thailand, from May 20-27.
Besides Chong Wei, the others in the team are singles players – Lee Zii Jia, Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin, Soong Joo Ven and doubles players Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong, Teo Ee Yi-Ong Yew Sin and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani.
“Iskandar and I have played in the Thomas Cup before. This is a platform for Zii Jia and Joo Ven to prove themselves. I hope the youngsters will step up,” said Chong Wei.
Chong Wei’s other major tournaments this year are the Commonwealth Games in Australia from April 4- 15, World Championships in China from July 30-August 5 and the Asian Games in Indonesia from August 18-29.